Sheltering Beautiful Biodiversity, such as this Common Indian Crow Butterfly caterpillar found in Indian forests, is another reason to conserve these important carbon-storing ecosystems. Credit Maneesh Kaul at flickr

Forests: the cheapest way to store carbon

This Red Billed Parrot Will Be Protected in the new reserve in northern Peru.Source Nature and Culture International

OO Peru: Private Conservation Area Will Protect
30% Of Northern Montane Forests – Nature and Culture International (NCI) announced the creation of a nearly 67,000 -acre protected area in northern Peru, the Chicuate Chinguelas Private Conservation Area.

OO Crops Are Becoming Toxic To Withstand Extreme Weather Conditions – accumulating toxins to dangerous levels that can kill livestock, and can cause cancer and other serious illnesses in humans says a UN Environment Programme report.

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HOT NEWS

OO The Heat Goes On…
2016 Likely To Be Hottest Year On Record despite a looming La Niña, the cooler counterpart of the weather phenomenon El Niño, which combined with human-caused warming to supercharge global temperature in 2015/16 and brought chaotic weather worldwide.

OO Effect Of CO2 On Warming Is Worse Than We Thought as scientists note that the record breaking heat of 2014-2016 indicates the climate is more sensitive to rising CO2 than previously thought.

Spiralling Out Of Control if we let it do so…. to see the moving version, go to the link below. Source USGS

OO Temperatures To Spiral Even Faster Than
In Recent Decades — a widely viewed temperature spiral graph, has been projected forward to 2100, using our current carbon emissions, and shows that “things could get out of hand pretty quickly”.

Meanwhile…

OO US Leads Globe In Oil Production For Third Year and in gas, both climate-changing fuels, say federal data, making the US the prime merchant of climate change, even as it commits to cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

A task force is working towards developing uniform, voluntary disclosure standards that companies can use to demonstrate they are dealing with climate-related financial risks.

Related Headline:

OO The Long Twilight Of The Big Oil Companies – major oil companies met and argued inconclusively over adapting to a future committed towards entirely cutting fossil fuel emissions, either through developing ways to cut emissions, or switch to clean energy.

Oil companies should “embrace a future of long-term decline,“ the Financial Times editorial says.

OO Melting Permafrost Is Turbocharging Climate Change in Alaska, as it releases carbon back to the atmosphere, notes this in-depth newsweek article. So far, this slow and steady unlocking of carbon from the earth remains unaccounted for in scientists’ projections of future climate change.

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Pop! and Spread – the Batagaika crater likely started with an explosive release of methane (note the sheer walls at the back) 25 years ago, and widens up to 20 meters yearly as the permafrost melts, releasing yet more climate-changing gas into the atmosphere. Source http://www.independent.co.uk

OO ‘The Gateway To The Underworld’ Siberia Crater:
A Warning To Our Warming Planet – such slumps have been ‘increasing in extent and intensity’ in the frozen north, scientists say.

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How Climate Change Is Greening the Arctic – with each green pinpoint representing the extra greening taking place. Credit Cindy Starr at NASA

Antarctica Melting, Seas Rising: purple shows recently discovered areas where the collapse of glaciers is accelerating; yellow, the latest area found where a warming ocean has sped up glacial melting and retreat since 1990. Overall, the map shows how ice is streaming off Antarctica. Source http://www.antarcticglaciers.org

OO Long Overlooked Area Of Antarctica Sees Major Ice Loss – over recent years, the evidence has piled up that glaciers in parts of Antarctica have been melting and retreating at an increasingly worrying – and potentially unstoppable – pace.

“West Antarctica, in general, is not only exceptionally vulnerable to retreat triggered by ocean melting at the coastline, it is happening now and it is showing no sign of slowing down,” says study co-author Robert Bingham.“This whole process is pretty pervasive.”

Related Headline:

OO Another Part Of Antarctica Showing Signs Of Melting Glacial Retreat – is the Bellingshausen Coast in West Antarctica, four decades of data illustrate.

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Source NASA

A Slow But Long Term Cooler/Heater of Antarctica, and the world – the oceanic heat conveyor belt lags millennia behind the heating of the air and ocean surface, but is a major conveyor of heat around the planet.

BUT, because it carries so much heat so slowly, once its warmed sections reach Antarctica, it will heat the continent for thousands of years into the future, assuring substantial sea rise.

OO Ocean Conveyor Belt
Key To Sluggish Antarctic Warming – says a new study. Sections of the oceanic conveyor belt reaching Antarctica right now are colder, representing cooler temperatures of millennia past, and replace the warm water that the belt carries away.

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CORAL REEF CATASTROPHE

Then And Now: What We’ve Lost – up to half of corals of the northern Great Barrier Reef, a World Heritage Site, are dead; this magnificent natural wonder will take centuries to recover, if ever.

OO Bleaching Killed Up To Half The Corals
Of The Northern Great Barrier Reef scientists say, by mass bleaching in the last few months, with minor damage only to large parts of the southern areas.

The bleaching is the third to strike the reef in 18 years and the most extreme that scientists have recorded. Coral reef researcher Terry Hughes said that mortality rates were “off the scale”.

Related Headline:

One of Many Great Barrier Reef Beauties – this sea slug and many other colorful creatures thrive in the healthy parts of this incredible reef, the largest in the world.Source theverybesttop10.com

OO ‘Huge Wake Up Call’: Third Of
Northern Great Barrier Reef Corals Dead in the huge bleaching event earlier this year.

OO Great Barrier Reef May Never Rebound To Previous Health say scientists, from the huge bleaching event that has killed off more than half its corals in some northern reefs as temperatures rise.

Algae Grows Over Recent Dead Coral at the Great Barrier Reef, preventing young corals from resettling it. Credit Dorothea Bender-Champ at ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies

Coral Paradise Lost – at Jarvis Island reef, as contrasted with a 2010 and 2016 photo, the latter showing bleached and dead coral. Source NOAA

OO US Coral Sanctuary Is Now A ‘Graveyard’
Due To Record Warm Oceans – scientists on an expedition to Jarvis Island in the Pacific Remote Island Marine National Monument have found devastating loss of corals due to record warm ocean temperatures.

OO Thailand Closes Popular Dive Sites Over Coral Bleaching Crisis so that human overcrowding does not further stress corals undergoing bleaching from warm waters, in a rare move to shun tourism profits to protect the environment.

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FIXING CLIMATE CHANGE

@@ A Simple And Smart Way To Fix Climate Change given by Dan Miller in 2014 at a Ted talk suggests a way to profit as we tackle climate change, by finally charging those who sell and use fossil fuels – and distributing the revenues back to all of us.

The strategy is sure to speed transition to clean renewable energy. What’s not to like? Check it out!

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WORSENING WILDFIRES

As The World Warms, Wildfires Worsen Warming in Alaska and elsewhere, as illustrated in this graph of rising global temperatures. Credit Jill Pelto at http://www.jillpelto.com

OO Spike In Alaska Wildfires Is Worsening Global Warming US says, even worse than expected, say US government researchers.

The sharp spike in Alaska’s wildfires, where more than 5 million acres burned last year, are destroying a main buffer against climate change: the carbon-rich boreal forests, tundra and permafrost that have served as an enormous carbon sink.

Northern wildfires must now be recognized as a significant driver of climate change – and not just a side-effect, says a new US Geological Survey report.

OO A First: Developing World Invests More In Renewable Energy
Than Rich Countries a new study says.

“What is truly remarkable about these results is that they were achieved at a time when fossil fuel prices were at historic lows, and renewables remained at a significant disadvantage in terms of government subsidies”, notes Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century executive Christine Lins.

OO Global Clean Energy Employment Rose 5 % In 2015 fueled by a boom in solar and wind power jobs in the U.S. 8+ million new jobs were created in 2015, says an International Renewable Energy Agency report.

OO Wind And Solar Could Meet Nearly All Midwest Energy Needs By 2050 say researchers at the Solutions Project, in the Stanford University’s Atmosphere and Energy Program, led by Mark Jacobson, who says each state can hit a 100 percent renewable mix through wind, water and solar within 35 years.

OO Iowa:A Bipartisan Push To Become Leader In Wind Energy – Thanks to state officials who have long supported renewables, Iowa now leads all U.S. states in the percentage of its energy produced from wind.

OO Obama Team Pledges New Money for Clean Energy pledging, along with 20 international partners, to double funding for clean energy research and development, from $15 billion to $30 billion annually by the year 2021.

OO Uber And Millennials Help US Cities Cut Car Addiction – How? Through the growth of car-free homes, and increased car-sharing venues.

OO Norway To ‘Completely Ban All Petrol Powered Cars By 2025’ continuing its trend towards becoming one of the most ecologically progressive countries on the planet, according to reports.

‘What an amazingly awesome country’, Elon Musk tweeted.

OO China: The Electric Car You Can Charge
As Easily As Your Phone is in the works at Chehejia (“Car and Home”) company, under its youthful trailblazing head, Li Xiang. He aims to start selling such a commuter car by the end of 2017.

CUTTING THE GAS

OO G7 Nations Pledge To End Fossil Fuel Subsidies By 2025 – Leaders of the UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the EU urge all countries to join them in eliminating support for coal, oil and gas in a decade.

Nice, but not enough to avert worsening catastrophic climate change.

OO Russia To Up 2030 Emissions Cuts Target and get its companies to move on carbon pricing.

Taking Action on Climate Washington state Governor Jay Inslee is using executive power to bypass an inactive legislature. Source http://www.huffingtonpost.com

OO Washington State Limits Carbon Pollution From Largest Sources via executive action by Governor Jay Inslee to push ahead with a binding cap on carbon emissions, after failing to get legislators to act.

Washington would join nearly a dozen states including California that have capped carbon pollution from industrial sources.

The proposed rule requires large industrial emitters to gradually reduce carbon emissions over time, and would cover many industries, including power plants, oil refineries, fuel distributors, pulp and paper mills and others.

OO French Oil Giant Aims To Be 20 % Low-Carbon In Investments By 2036 as part of a radical reshaping of the Total group.

OO US Republican Congress Aims To Cut Climate Science and is considering significantly cutting funds for key climate change research by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 2017.

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CLIMATE LEADERSHIP

Keep Burning, Bernie!

OO Bernie Sanders Calls For Carbon Tax;
Knocks Trump (And The Media) Over Climate Change – he asked front-runner Hillary Clinton to join his call for a carbon tax and to shine a spotlight on Donald Trump’s science-challenged ruminations about the California drought, which he has mysteriously said he could end by turning “the water on.”

OOHillary Clinton Aims To Boost Clean Energy On Federal Land and water, pledging a tenfold boost in electricity production from sources like wind, solar and geothermal.

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ELECTION YEAR:

If You Don’t Vote For Climate Action, You Can Forget The Rest – in a climate-changing world of famine, drought, rising seas, giant storms and heat waves, there will be no security in jobs, health, wealth, or national safety. There will be chaos ensuing from increasing crises and disasters. Vote.

OO Global Warming Policies We Set Today Will Determine The Next 10,000 Years – of global warming, a new study shows — and whether our civilization survives or not: history shows that harmful climate change has destroyed civilizations before.

This time, it could be worldwide. Let’s keep “The Hunger Games“ in the realm of fiction.

“We cannot simultaneously champion fighting climate change without also fighting for the rights of women. The two are inextricably linked”, argues writer Madeleine Sommerville.

Triple Win: Using Profits to Provide Needed US Family Planning –Medicines360.org is key to creating a sustainable US population and bright futures for women – AND saving taxpayers many billions yearly in community costs by preventing unintended pregnancies. Source medicines360.org

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OO This New Neighborhood Will Grow Its Own Food, Power Itself,
And Handle Its Own Waste ReGen Village, outside of Amsterdam, doesn’t need a grid or food systems. It’s a model for a future, fully closed-loop settlement.

OO Paint Your Homes White To Protect From Heatwaves,
Officials Warn – ever notice that this is already done on many Mediterranean islands?

OO Make Building Standards Top Priority For Tackling Climate Change, says the International Energy Agency chief to all governments worldwide.

Going Into Deep Space To Study Climate as this Falcon 9 satellite did for NOAA.Source Reuters

OO World’s Space Agencies Unite To Face Climate Challenge – For the first time, space agencies of 60+ countries have agreed to engage their satellites, to coordinate their methods and their data to monitor human-induced greenhouse gas emissions.

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FOSSIL FUEL FOLLIES

Tar Sands: Far More Harmful Air Pollution emanates from them than previously suspected.

OO New Surprising Tar Sands Impact On Climate, Air Quality Found – Canada’s tar sands production is one of North America’s largest sources of secondary organic aerosols, says a new study — air pollutants that affect the climate, cloud formation and public health.

The scale even surprised researchers at Environment Canada because that sort of pollution is normally associated with large cities.

Not Climate-Changing, But Hazardous are the sulfur dioxide emissions from both volcanoes and fossil fuel activities. Credit Carmelo Imbesi at AP

OO 40+ Major New Sulfur Dioxide Pollution
Sources from Fossil Fuel Activities – centered mostly around Mideast oil and gas production areas, but also from power plants worldwide.

Sulfur dioxide can cause multiple harmful health and environmental impacts and even impact the climate in certain ways, typically by temporarily reducing the effects of global warming, despite its relatively short atmospheric life.

OO Fossil Fuel Investments Growing Riskier For Insurers a new report warns. With nearly $500 billion invested, a new analysis recommends insurance companies take a harder look at the consequences of climate change and a lower-carbon future.

OO Crystal Balls, Hard Truths Confront Bankrupt Energy Companies – tough times for fossil fuels: 3 of the 4 largest U.S. coal companies are bankrupt. 70+ small oil and gas producers have folded since 2014. Now, bigger drillers have started to join them.

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Giant Fireballs often form when oil trains derail, as this one did in West Virginia in 2015; it took nearly a week for the uncontrollable fire to burn out. Source The Associated Press

OO Oregon: Derailment Is Latest
In String Of US Oil Train Crashes – The derailment of an oil train in Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge follows a string of fiery accidents in the U.S. and Canada as shipments of crude by rail have increased with more domestic oil production.

How unusual has the weather been? No one event is “caused” by climate change, but global warming, which is predicted to increase unusual, extreme weather, is having a daily effect on weather, worldwide.

Looking above at recent temperature anomalies, much of the US and the waters surrounding it are experiencing warmer than normal temperatures: in California, the drought continues.

Much of the areas surrounding the North Pole are experiencing much warmer than normal temperatures – not good news for our Arctic thermal shield of ice. Hotter than usual temperatures continue to dominate human habitats.

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There is, of course, much more news on the consequences and solutions to climate change. To get it, check out this annotated resource list I’ve compiled, “Climate Change News Resources,” at WordPress.com here. For more information on the science of climate change, its consequences and solutions you can view my annotated list of online information resources here.

To help you understand just what science does and does NOT do, check thisout!

Every day is Earth Day, folks, as I was reminded by this wild yellow violet I photographed one spring. Making the U.S. a global clean energy leader will ensure a heck of a lot more jobs, and a clean, safe future. If you’d like to join the increasing numbers of people who want to TELL Congress that they will vote for clean energy candidates you can do so here. It’s our way of letting Congress know there’s a strong clean energy voting bloc out there. For more detailed summaries of the above and other climate change items, audio podcasts and textsare freely available.

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About melharte

Mel (Mary Ellen) Harte is a biologist (PhD) and climate change educator. She co-authored the free online book, COOL THE EARTH, SAVE THE ECONOMY, available at www.CoolTheEarth.US, and writes the CLIMATE CHANGE THIS WEEK column at the HuffingtonPost. Living summers in the alpine Rockies, she is on the frontlines of watching what climate change can do. Her diagnostic digital photographs of wildflowers have appeared in numerous publications.